Prefer to lead your own lessons? We offer our lesson plans for free and have adapted them for personal use. Our lessons focus on waste literacy with activities that explore our relationship with plastics and their impact on aquatic ecosystems. All lessons are designed to inspire solutions towards plastic pollution. While designed from our Grade 5 lesson plans, these can be adapted for all ages, and are designed to work both in the classroom and at home.
Each lesson plan contains an ‘Instructor Guide’ which outlines the materials needed for each activity. Lesson plans have been designed to easily download our online resources and use items commonly found at home.
Plastic Cycle
Understanding the plastic cycle (i.e., how plastic is made, how it is used, and where it goes when we throw it “away”) is important to comprehend how we have reached unsustainable levels of plastic production and plastic pollution. This lesson will introduce participants to what the definition of “plastic” is, teach them about the plastic lifecycle, and introduce the concept of a circular economy.

- Instructor Guide (download here)
- Activity 1: The Diversity of Plastic (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Sign Templates (download here)
- Bonus Experiment – Is it a Paper Cup or a Plastic Cup? (download here)
- Activity 2: A Closer Look at Plastic (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Supplementary sheets (Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3)
- Activity 3: Match the Sustainable Alternative (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Plastic Info Cards (download here)
Watersheds & Their Relationship to Litter
Learning about watersheds is important in order to understand how waterways are connected and why our interactions play a larger impact on an ecosystem. Participants will be shown a visual representation of a watershed and have a chance to visualize different sources of plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems. Finally, participants will be asked to consider their own watershed and what sources of local pollution may exist.
- Instructor Guide (download here)
- Activity 1: What is a Watershed? (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Activity 2: Plastic in My Watershed! (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Watershed Game Board & Pieces (download here)
- Activity 3: Float, Sink or Suspend? (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Supplementary sheet (download here)

Impacts of Plastic on Ecosystems
Plastic pollution in the environment is not only ugly to look at but has the potential to impact ecosystems in many harmful ways. This lesson introduces the impacts of plastic pollution on ecosystems while inspiring action to create solutions. Participants will participate in activities to understand the impacts of entanglement and ingestion on wildlife, with a focus on animal species found in the Great Lakes ecosystems.

- Instructor Guide (download here)
- Activity 1: Get to Know Your Ecosystem (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Ecosystem Posters and Wildlife Cards (download here)
- Bonus Experiment – What is the Impact of Plastic on Plants? (download here)
- Activity 2: Oh no, I’m Entangled! (download here)
- Activity 3: Entangled Flight (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Paper Plane Bird Template (download here)
- Activity 4: Plastics for Dinner (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Food Chain (poster | wildlife images)
Solutions to Plastic Pollution
Plastic is found nearly everywhere in our environment and will become an even larger problem if we don’t develop new solutions to reduce its impact. This lesson will introduce participants to the concept of a Solutions Hierarchy as they learn about approaches to plastic pollution solutions, and an introduction to the different levels that action on plastic pollution can happen and the groups involved (individual, communities, government, companies). The lesson will also engage participants in a creative exercise to identify and develop a solution relevant in their own lives.
- Instructor Guide (download here)
- Activity 1: What is a Solutions Hierarchy? (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Solutions Hierarchy Video (here)
- Activity 2: Groups for Solutions! (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Groups Interactions Poster (download here)
- Groups Sign Templates (download here)
- Activity 3: Design Your Own Plastic Pollution Solution (download here)
- Worksheet (download here)
- Solutions Hierarchy Poster (download here)
- Supplementary Resources (download here)
- Bonus Activity: Letter Template (download here)
- Materials from Home: Arts and craft supplies

Co-creation
These lessons were created with the help of many volunteers.
Plastic Cycle: Clara Thaysen, Ludovic Hermabessiere, Tina Wu
Watersheds & Their Relationship to Litter: Bonnie Hamilton, Hayley McIlwraith, Rachel Giles
Impacts of Plastic on Ecosystems: Kennedy Bucci, Lisa Erdle, Sam Athey
Solutions to Plastic Pollution: Alice (Xia) Zhu, Arielle Earn
Editors: Alishba Afaq, Arielle Earn, Anthony Carrozzi, Cassandra Sherlock and Hayley McIlwraith.
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